On Feb. 14, Syracuse Center of Excellence in Environmental and Energy Systems (SyracuseCoE) hosted the first Smart Cities Research @ SU workshop, led by Sevgi Erdogan, associate professor at the School of Information Studies (iSchool). Professor Erdogan is one of the recipients of a 2024 SyracuseCoE Faculty Fellow award. This past year, SyracuseCoE awarded nearly $200,000 in Faculty Fellow funding to support 11 research and innovation projects led by faculty members from Syracuse University and SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry.
Erdogan is the director of the Smart Cities and Civic Technologies (SC&CT) Research Center, an interdisciplinary research hub focused on the interaction of human, physical and natural systems and on connecting the interdependencies between them. The center seeks to leverage information science and digital technologies to inform public policy, advancing sustainability and resiliency.
Professor Erdogan’s Faculty Fellow project, “Smart Cities Research Network Development for Sustainable and Resilient Communities,” aims to bring together faculty members, government agencies, and community partners to develop an institutional framework for smart cities research. A smart city is one that utilizes sensor networks, advanced Information Communication Technologies (ICT), Internet of Things (IoT), artificial intelligence, big data analytics and cloud computing to deliver services more efficiently and improve quality of life for residents. The applications can span almost all aspects of city governance including but not limited to mobility, resilience and disaster response, environmental monitoring, energy efficiency, engagement and community, economic development, housing, waste management and more.
The Feb. 14 event was the first of two workshops supported by this Faculty Fellow award. With a strong interdisciplinary approach, the workshop engaged faculty from the School of Information Studies (the iSchool), the College of Engineering and Computer Science, the College of Arts and Sciences, the Martin J. Whitman School of Management, the School of Architecture and the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs. Government stakeholders also attended, including representatives from the City of Syracuse’s Office of the Mayor and from the Syracuse Metropolitan Transportation Council (SMTC).
To kick off the workshop, Professor Erdogan, along with iSchool Associate Dean for Research Carsten Østerlund and SyracuseCoE Executive Director Jianshun “Jensen” Zhang, gave opening remarks. Jennifer Tifft, Director of Strategic Initiatives for the City of Syracuse, and Vincent Scipione, Director of Digital Services for the City of Syracuse, shared relevant initiatives and research needs at the municipal level. Faculty from across SU then gave lightning talks to highlight ongoing scholarship. The Office of Research Development also facilitated a working session to identify research themes and areas for potential collaboration.
“This workshop was a crucial step in establishing a collaborative foundation for smart city research at SU and positioning the university as a leader in smart city innovations,” says Erdogan. “At its core, this initiative is about using technology and data for social good, about creating sustainable and resilient communities. Meaningful smart city research begins with collaboration, which is why bringing together key community members was essential.”
“In this first workshop, we focused on engaging faculty and government partners, leveraging our collaboration with the City of Syracuse to identify critical problems, develop potential real-world applications, and explore how Syracuse can help lead in smart city innovation. Looking ahead, our next workshop will expand this effort by engaging community organizations and industry partners. We want to build a research network that actively listens to and serves the community, ensuring technology is used to meet real needs.”
“SyracuseCoE is pleased to host and support this and future workshops on smart cities research and collaborations,” says Zhang. “In collaboration with our academic, industrial and community partners, SyracuseCoE is establishing a multiscale air quality, stormwater, and energy flow monitoring system testbed across Syracuse. The multiscale testbed and its near-real-time data will open ample opportunities for both academic research and industrial innovations in the development of smart city technologies and systems, including preliminary results that support applications for externally sponsored collaborative research projects.”
Faculty who are interested in joining the second Smart Cities Research @ SU workshop should contact Professor Sevgi Erdogan at serdogan@syr.edu.
